Taiwan's new President Lai Ching-te urged China to stop its military and political threats against the self-ruled island in his inaugural speech Monday, saying peace is the "only option," amid heightened tensions with the Communist-led mainland, which condemns him as an advocate for independence.
Lai also said his new government will "neither yield nor provoke, and maintain the status quo" in the two sides' relationship, calling on Beijing to share the responsibility of "maintaining peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait" to ensure the world is "free from the fear of war."
China, which claims Taiwan as its own, aims to bring the island into its fold, by force if necessary. It has regularly sent military vessels and warplanes near it while also pressuring it economically.
Lai, who leads the independence-leaning Democratic Progressive Party, urged China to "choose dialogue over confrontation, exchange over containment" and "under the principles of parity and dignity" cooperate with "the legal government chosen by Taiwan's people" in order to "together pursue peace and mutual prosperity."
In Beijing, China's State Council Taiwan Affairs Office accused Lai of sending a "dangerous signal" in his inaugural speech, claiming he "stubbornly" sought the island's independence and made provocations that could undermine cross-strait peace and stability.
Beijing has shunned talks with the DPP government since Tsai Ing-wen, Lai's predecessor, took office in 2016. Her successor said that neither Taiwan nor mainland China, having split after a civil war in 1949, are "subordinate to each other."
The 64-year-old new leader also said Taiwan must boost its defense capabilities in the "face of the many threats and attempts of infiltration from China," enhance its economic security and work with other democracies to achieve peace.
"By standing side-by-side with other democratic countries, we can form a peaceful global community that can demonstrate the strength of deterrence and prevent war," he added. Taiwan has been boosting ties with countries including the United States in recent years.
On the economic front, Lai said Taiwan has already mastered advanced semiconductor manufacturing and is "a key player in supply chains for global democracies." He also called for speeding up the territory's transformation into an "AI island" to make its economy and military stronger by adopting artificial intelligence.
Together with Lai, Vice President Hsiao Bi-khim, 52, a former de facto ambassador to the United States, took office at the swearing-in ceremony.
Among over 500 foreign guests who attended the inauguration ceremony were some 30 parliamentarians from Japan and two former senior U.S. officials -- former Director of the National Economic Council Brian Deese and former Deputy Secretary of State Richard Armitage.
In Tokyo, Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshimasa Hayashi said Japan will work to expand its cooperation with Taiwan on "a nongovernmental basis," and that the island, which shares fundamental values and maintains close economic relations and people-to-people exchanges, is an "extremely crucial partner and an important friend" for Tokyo.
The United States, in a statement issued Sunday by Secretary of State Antony Blinken, vowed to deepen its "longstanding unofficial relationship" with Taiwan to work together to maintain cross-strait peace and stability.
In contrast to its stance toward the DPP, which was also in power from 2000 to 2008, Beijing favorably treats the island's main opposition Nationalist Party, or Kuomintang (KMT).
The KMT ruled Taiwan for most of the period since the end of World War II, including between 2008 and 2016 under then President Ma Ying-jeou, and now has the largest number of seats in parliament.
Ma's office criticized Lai over his inaugural speech, claiming it showed his "direct and explicit" independence-leaning stance that could trigger "an unprecedentedly dangerous situation" between the two sides. Ma met with Chinese President Xi Jinping last month in Beijing.
Lai defeated his two opposition party rivals in a closely watched election in January, securing a third consecutive four-year term for the DPP for the first time since the direct leadership poll was introduced in 1996.
Taiwan is not officially recognized by most countries and cannot participate in meetings of the United Nations and its agencies. Its diplomatic allies have plummeted to 12 amid China's pressure on countries to break ties with it.
Taiwan's presidents can serve up to two four-year terms. Lai, who was prime minister from 2017 to 2019, unsuccessfully challenged Tsai in the 2019 DPP presidential primary and served as vice president in her second term.
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